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CHAPTER 111
~Ash's POV~
Ace grinned lazily. "You're brooding harder than a vampire caught in daylight. It's cute."
"Piss off."
"Not until you tell me why Dristan's living in your head rent-free."
I turned sharply toward him. "Because he did it again. Just swooped in like a damn dark knight, threw lightning like it was candy, and made Valerie look at him like—like—"
"Like she wanted to rip his shirt off and pledge her loyalty?" Ace supplied helpfully.
I groaned, dragging a hand through my hair. "You're not helping."
"I'm not trying to help. I'm trying to keep you from sulking so hard that the cliff gives up and swallows you."
I didn't answer.
Ace sat up straighter, tone shifting slightly. "Ash… you know this isn't just about him saving her."
"It is. It is exactly that," I snapped, more forcefully than intended. "Every time I think she's warming up to me—to us—he shows up."
"Is she?"